NEW HAVEN >> Willie Hill will be able to get the colonoscopy his doctor said he needs in January when he becomes eligible for the expansion of Medicaid under the Affordable Care Act.

Hill, 52, who is unemployed after losing the sight in one eye and didn’t qualify for state assistance for health care, said he is happy he will be covered by insurance in a few months.

He was among patients U.S. Sen. Chris Murphy saw at the Cornell Scott Hill Healthcare Center Wednesday when he went to check on enrollment through the new health care exchange.

“This is a perfect example of why this bill is so important, because now you are going to be able to get that colonoscopy. If there is something happening, you can take care of it right then and there instead of waiting until it gets to be a crisis,” Murphy said. “This is what we try to explain to people. You give them a little money for preventive care ... you save all this money later on because you catch things early instead of letting then become a real crisis later on.”

Advertisement

Gayle Baxter, 63, also will qualify for coverage in January under Medicaid.

Nancee Carpenter, who is the eligibility coordinator, said patients she has talked to are split between taking the expanded Medicaid and those looking at private insurance options, with some taking home details to study further.

Carpenter told Baxter it took about two years to work out all the kinks when Medicare was introduced. Murphy said he understands people are impatient, but he urged Baxter to spread the word on her successful enrollment.

“The rollout has gone better than we could have expected in Connecticut. Our website has not been plagued by the problems we have seen nationwide. The folks at the exchange have suggested that the numbers are much better than they had expected in terms of enrollment and applications,” Murphy said,

He gave credit to the seven people who are dedicated to enrolling the uninsured at the Hill Health Center to helping move the project along.

Murphy said he wants people across the country to know enrollment is working well in states that took the initiative, such as Kentucky and Washington, as well as Connecticut.

“But we also have to understand that patience is important,” he said. He said the government never expected the private insurance exchanges would see huge numbers early on with most people waiting for the Dec. 15 deadline to make their decision.

According to Access Health CT, which is running the state’s health care exchange, 1,950 people had enrolled in Medicaid as of Oct. 15, while 1,897 were in private insurance plans. The majority of enrollees across the board are in the age 55-64 category, followed by ages 45-54.

Murphy got a tour of the health clinic through its adult health area, women’s center and behavioral health section.

“Unlike some of our peers, half of this organization is behavioral health,” said Michael Taylor, chief executive officer at the center.

“We currently have collaboration we are working on with Yale-New Haven Hospital. They are working with us to expand our partial hospitalization, intensive outpatient behaviorial programs for substance abuse,” he told Murphy.

Taylor said the Hill, with its proximity to Yale, offers speciality clinics in cardiology, ophthalmology, dermatology and pediatric dentistry.